UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

For every child, immunisation. 

UNICEF South Africa, there for every child.

The challenge: Thousands of children die from treatable and preventable conditions. Since 1995, South Africa has made substantial progress in transforming its health sector, making primary healthcare services available to millions who were previously denied access. Yet access to healthcare remains a challenge, with vital healthcare interventions not reaching the areas and people that need them. Read more…

The solution: UNICEF is committed to ensuring that every child survives and thrives. Our approach to South Africa’s health challenge is three-fold:

• contributing to the evidence-base for policy, advocacy and programming
• delivering innovative programmes with partners – especially in high-burden and low-performing districts
• supporting the Government to develop and implement policies and strategies to take vital action to scale Read more…

BACKGROUND

This consultancy is requested by the Health Section to help achieve its goal of ensuring girls and boys, including the most deprived, receive an integrated package of quality and equitable maternal, neonatal and child health (MNCH), HIV/AIDS and nutrition care and services. The consultancy forms part of UNICEF’s ongoing support to targeted provinces and districts to strengthen implementation of the maternal, newborn and child health and immunisation programme, and capacity to deliver evidence-based MNCH services in a coordinated manner. (Output 1.2).

With technical oversight by the Social and Behaviour Change (SBC) Manager, the consultancy will centre on strengthening the selected provinces and districts’ capacity to integrate community engagement in immunisation planning, and to implement social and behaviour change approaches to address demand side barriers to uptake of immunisation services. SBC system strengthening is a key strategy under Output 8.8, to help ensure quality SBC and Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) interventions are delivered to reduce the spread of disease, promote safe physical and mental health lifestyles, improve uptake of services and address social, structural and behavioural barriers to action, through increased generation and use of evidence, strengthened capacity, strategic partnerships and coordination.

This consultancy has become possible through UNICEF South Africa urgently leveraging additional funding to expand its current support for the Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI-SA), and interventions to reach children who have missed their scheduled immunisations at six and at 14 weeks – respectively termed zero dose and under immunised children, the numbers of which have risen significantly since 2021 (fig 1).

Figure 1: Number of zero-dose children 2016 – 2023. Source DHIS

How can you make a difference?

The Journey to Health framework is one of the UNICEF-developed tools and resources. to apply a human-centred design approach to improve uptake of immunisation and other services. The framework enables teams to consider every step before, during and after the point of vaccination to deepen understanding of zero dose communities. It can also serve as the basis for an interactive journey mapping exercise with facility and community members, to strengthen relationships, and inform joint planning, making it easier for at risk and underserved groups to take up available services.

• Develop an advocacy strategy and plan, aligned with the national zero dose plan, to demonstrate the benefit of using the immunisation programme as a point of entry for integrated child health services, and mobilise leadership support.
• Develop an advocacy briefing pack with relevant background and calls to action, including a short presentation.
• Support convening an advocacy event to champion routine immunization and strengthen support for all elements of the EPI programme, including health promotion and community engagement.

2. Support provincial and district DoH in City of Johannesburg, City of Tshwane, Ekurhuleni and Ethekwini to mobilize and equip community and faith leaders to champion immunization, and integrated child health services.

• Support district teams to convene and engage faith-based and community leaders around the urgent need for plans to reach zero dose and under-immunized children with immunization and essential services, and to address any questions or concerns.
• Support the development of district faith and community leader action plans, with clear objectives and calls to action.
• Develop and/or collate and adapt existing materials into a resource pack for community and faith-based leaders, to sustain support and equip them to build trust in and promote the benefits of immunization and child health services.

• Support District teams to report on tailored strategies and activities implemented, and identify challenges and needs, e.g. in engaging un-reached communities.
• Support development of a social and community listening strategy for immunization and vaccine hesitancy, and implementing tools, e.g., to collect community feedback, to strengthen systematic monitoring of community conversations and rumors, and use of insights to guide planning.
• Provide continuing education e.g., through updates on new social and behavioural data, on district/sub district health promotion and outreach teams role in Risk Communication and Community Engagement during outbreak responses, and tools to applying the Journey to Health framework.
• Support UNICEF’s role in the National RCCE TWG, to facilitate up to date communication on outbreaks such as mpox, and strengthening of outbreak responses, including community engagement, accountability social listening and community feedback.
• Develop and administer short capacity assessment tool to gauge effectiveness of UNICEF support.

• Review existing mechanisms for information sharing across district, provincial and national teams to identify gaps and needs.
• Strengthen/ establish a cross cutting online platform for collaboration (e.g., Internet of Good Things) to serve as a repository of relevant information and capacity building tools and forum for interaction.
• Compile repository and review existing communication materials on routine immunization, un and under vaccinated children.
• Identify gaps and requirements and develop a brief on new materials required to be co-created and produced (audience, format, language etc.) to address barriers and encourage uptake.

• Attend inception and regular UNICEF project meetings; provide workplan, update reports – including on any RCCE TWG activities, and recommendations on implementation at National, Provincial and District levels.
• Identify report human interest stories (anecdotal evidence that can illustrate change), and secure permission for these to be documented by UNICEF’s communication team.

Tasks and deliverables

1. Support national and provincial DoH in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal to advocate for and raise the profile of immunization as an entry point for integrated primary care – deadline 30 November 2024 (payment 20% of the total fee)

• National immunisation advocacy strategy and plan.
• Immunisation advocacy briefing pack.
• National/provincial immunisation advocacy event and report.

2. Support provincial and district DoH in City of Johannesburg, City of Tshwane, Ekurhuleni, and eThekwini to mobilize and equip community and faith leaders to champion immunization, and integrated child health services – deadline 31 March 2025 (payment 20% of the total fee)

• Four district community and faith leader advocacy meetings and report.
• Four district Community/ faith leader action plans with messages and calls to actions.
• Community/faith leader resource pack.

3. Strengthen and assess capacity of health promotion/ outreach teams in City of Johannesburg, City of Tshwane, Ekurhuleni, and eThekwini to develop tailored strategies to reach zero dose children – deadline 30 April 2025 (payment 25% of the total fee)

• UNICEF District Reporting template timeously completed by four districts.
• Social and Community Listening Strategy and tools for immunisation developed.
• Two educational presentations compiled and presented.
• Capacity assessment tool developed and administered.
• Report on support to UNICEF’s role in RCCE TWG provided, including meetings, liaising with ESAR RCCE, and technical support provided.

4. Strengthen collaboration and information sharing between Districts and Sub-Districts and improve communication materials to promote immunization – deadline 30 November 2024 (payment 15% of the total fee)

• Report on existing mechanisms of communication and collaboration.
• Online platform and repository for collaboration established/strengthened.
• Review of existing communication materials to promote immunisation and gaps.
• Brief on new SBCC materials required.

5. Monitor, evaluate and document – Bi-weekly (as agreed) and final by 31 May 2025 (payment 20% of the total fee)

• Inception meeting report, with workplan and timeline, within 2 weeks of signature/meeting.
• Summary minutes and action points of bi-weekly (tbc) project meetings recorded, including feedback from mentoring, lessons learned, human interest stories, and RCCE activities.
• Final project report providing overview of activities, compendium of tools etc developed, photos, agenda, registers, and other evidence of meetings convened, as well as recommendations to sustain system of developing tailored strategies to reach vulnerable populations with essential child health services.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

• An advanced university degree (Master’s or higher) in social and behavioural science, sociology, public health, anthropology, psychology, communication, development, education, or another relevant technical field
  A minimum of 10 years of proven experience and expertise in providing technical support for community engagement and social and behaviour change interventions in South Africa
• Previous experience in supporting the National Department of Health’s Expanded Programme on Immunisation is an advantage
• Previous experience with Journey to Health framework, human-centred design processes, or Behavioural and Social Drivers (BeSD) model is an advantage, as well as experience with emergency response to disease outbreak
• References of previous similar work done are required
• Developing country work experience and/or familiarity with emergency is considered an asset
• Fluency in English is required
• Knowledge of another local language is an asset

Specialized skills and/or training if needed:

• Facilitation
• Participatory processes
• Capacity building

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS).

To view our competency framework, please visit  here.

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for consultants/individual contractors with disabilities. This may include, for example, accessible software, travel assistance for missions or personal attendants. We encourage you to disclose your disability during your application in case you need reasonable accommodation during the selection process and afterwards in your assignment.

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.

Remarks: 

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations and UNICEF’s policies and procedures, and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultants and individual contractors are responsible for determining their tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws.

The selected candidate is solely responsible to ensure that the visa (applicable) and health insurance required to perform the duties of the contract are valid for the entire period of the contract. Selected candidates are subject to confirmation of fully-vaccinated status against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) with a World Health Organization (WHO)-endorsed vaccine, which must be met prior to taking up the assignment. It does not apply to consultants who will work remotely and are not expected to work on or visit UNICEF premises, programme delivery locations or directly interact with communities UNICEF works with, nor to travel to perform functions for UNICEF for the duration of their consultancy contracts.